My Edinburgh: our resident expert's favourite places
From the medieval tenements and secret wynds of the Old Town to the glorious sweep of the New Town; from douce Morningside to shabby-chic Leith, Edinburgh is a city of infinite variety.
With every advantage of urban living, including some of the world's best summer festivals, it has everything you could want — and it's all within walking distance. I cannot imagine a better city to live in.
The perfect day
I would start at the Stockbridge Sunday Market before exploring the local shops along St Stephen’s Street and Raeburn Place for artisan cheeses, vintage clothing and vinyl, second-hand books and designer jewellery. Then lunch at Tom Kitchin and Dominic Jack’s The Scran and Scallie (0131 3326281; scranandscallie.com) gastropub, where the look is Scandinavia meets Isle of Bute but the food is firmly traditional: ‘Sheep’s Heid Scotch Broth’, ‘Braised Hogget’ and ‘Crumble of the Day’.
After lunch take the bosky path along the Water of Leith past St Bernard’s Well (if you’re lucky the 1789 pump room will be open) through pretty Dean Village to the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art (nationalgalleries.org).
In the evening I’d head to the Usher Hall (www.usherhall.co.uk) for a concert, or the Lyceum Theatre (www.lyceum.org.uk) next door, then to nearby Tuk Tuk (tuktukonline.com; 0131 228 3322) for authentic Indian street food. Try a Massala Thums Up (Coca-Cola Bombay style) with your Patina Lamb Karahi.
Where I tell my friends to stay
Six Brunton Place is a neoclassical William Playfair town house artfully converted into sublimely simple five-star accommodation. Sip a complimentary glass of wine in the room where Frederick James Ritchie and Alexander Graham Bell discussed their inventions before heading off to bed in the Garden Room where french windows open onto the sunny walled garden.
For those who want to embrace their inner hipster, Eden Locke Aparthotel is all about the design. Quirky, clever and in a spot-on city centre location, you’re perfectly poised for shopping, sightseeing or just some seriously chilled relaxation (beards not required).
Favourite walk
Wear your boots for the shore path (walkhighlands.co.uk/lothian/dalmeny-estate.shtml) from South Queensferry to Crammond. Starting under the Forth Rail Bridge opposite the Hawes Inn, you pass Hound Point beach, Barnbougle Castle and stately Dalmeny House (divert for a tour in June and July; dalmeny.co.uk). Spot kingfishers on the River Almond before arriving at Crammond Brig on the edge of the city, or detour to historic Crammond Village for tea at the harbourside café (total distance, six and a half miles).
Favourite restaurant
The Radford family’s Timberyard (0131 2211222; timberyard.co) is my enduring favourite in a city of great restaurants. Start with a larch gimlet, then try the in-house smoked juniper pigeon or cured pork belly and finish with pear, pine, sweet cicely and crowdie meringue. The cleverly converted timber warehouse is appealing at any time of year, with a sun trap courtyard for summer and a wood-burning stove for winter.
For something a little more intimate, consider the eight-course tasting menu (￡75) at Restaurant Mark Greenaway (0131 226 1155; markgreenaway.com), where the Great British Menu chef’s puddings make the most stalwart members of the anti-sugar brigade go weak at the knees. On a budget? The three- course Market Menu is great value at ￡29.50.
Take my advice and...
…wing it at the Fringe (August 3-27; edfringe.com). Go to the Virgin Money half-price ticket hut on the Mound, stick a pin in the programme and take your chances. If you want to see the Tattoo for half-price, try for a August 2 preview ticket. They go on sale at 10am on July 23 (edintattoo.co.uk) but be quick, numbers are limited. And if you can’t stand crowds, avoid Princes Street and join the locals in Inverleith Park (edinburghguide.com/parks/inverleithpark) for the festival fireworks concert on the August 27.
Favourite tea shop
Imagine drinking tea with Miss Marple in The Old Curiosity Shop – that’s Anteaques (0131 667 8466; anteaques.co.uk). Around 250 varieties of tea, fresh scones and cakes served in a tiny antiques shop — deliciously eccentric.
Favourite pub
In the summer I take friends to the family-friendly The Espy (0131 669 0082) in Bath Street, overlooking Portobello beach. In winter, you’ll find us sipping sloe gin fizzes by the fire at the Last Word cocktail saloon (lastwordsaloon.com).
Favourite view
From Calton Hill all of Edinburgh unfolds at your feet, while the whimsical roofscape of crow-stepped gables, domes, cupolas and chimney pots is straight out of Mary Poppins.
Perfect night out
Summerhall (summerhall.co.uk) is a lively arts venue at the former School of Veterinary Studies. Events include ceilidhs, jazz concerts, theatre, life-drawing classes, film premieres and club nights. In the Royal Dick café/bar, former vet school fittings sit alongside antique and contemporary furniture; the craft beer is brewed next door.
What I’ll be doing in the coming months
Hoping the ice doesn’t melt before I see the life-sized ice sculptures (think Mary Queen of Scots as a giant ice lolly) that are part of Edinburgh’s fabulous Christmas Festival celebrations (November 17-January 6; edinburghschristmas.com). Then I plan to get a new perspective on early 20th century Scottish painting at ‘A New Era: Scottish Modern Art of 1900-1950’ (Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art; December 2-June 10), before turning into Miss Nosy at Edinburgh’s Doors Open Day (www.cockburnassociation.org.uk) in late September.
Books for inspiration
Kate Atkinson’s One Good Turn (Black Swan, ￡7.99) perfectly captures Edinburgh at Festival time, while The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark (Penguin, ￡8.99) made Morningside famous.
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